The San Diego Chargers' LaDainian Tomlinson broke Shaun Alexander's NFL single-season touchdown record of 28 when he scored three times Sunday against the Denver Broncos. It's the fourth time since 2000 the record has been broken. Progression of the record since 1983:

LaDainian Tomlinson, the Chargers' wonderful running back, tied Shaun Alexander's single-season NFL record with his 28th touchdown late in the fourth quarter of the Chargers' seventh consecutive victory.

But after Shawne Merriman's sack, forced fumble and recovery gave the Chargers the possession again on the Broncos' 7-yard line with 3:15 left, the masses were clamoring to see history.

"I knew if I ran it wide ... the play is really designed to go inside," Tomlinson said after rushing for 103 yards and three scores. "Usually, what the coaching staff tells me is if I go outside, I'm on my own. Sometimes, it's the chance you take, that's the risk you take."

The blocks sprung Tomlinson to sprint toward the left corner on the first-down run, but Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams suddenly knifed into his running lane. The play had the potential to be blown up for a loss.

"I felt there was no way that I could let Darrent tackle me," said Tomlinson, a powerfully compact 5-11, 221. "Darrent is a great corner, but he's only 165, 170 pounds."

In a split-second, Tomlinson flashed the combination of speed, power and elusiveness that makes him the game's best back. As he cradled the ball in his left arm, he extended his right arm and dipped further outside. That juke left Williams on the turf. Then Tomlinson accelerated around the corner and through an alley to a new NFL record.

Tomlinson also set a Chargers record with his eighth 100-yard rushing game of the season and tied John Riggins' 1983 NFL record with his seventh consecutive multi-touchdown game. And by running his season total for scoring to 174 points, he is three points from breaking the NFL mark set by Green Bay's Paul Hornung in 1960.

"It's extra meaningful because it helped up clinch the division and get into the playoffs," Tomlinson said.

He also breathed a sigh of relief about the touchdown mark.

"The hoopla is over about the record," he said.

The hoopla about how far Tomlinson and the Chargers (11-2) might soar this season, is only beginning.

Getting their balance

With the Indianapolis Colts getting crushed in Jacksonville on Sunday, the Chargers moved into the top spot in the conference with three games to play. For weeks they have appeared to be the league's most balanced team, with the Tomlinson-led offense complemented by a ferocious defense and solid special teams.

Much of this was on display against the Broncos (7-6), who led the AFC West for much of the first half of the season but have fallen on hard times with four consecutive losses.

"You see the difference every game," said all-pro tight end Antonio Gates, whose team-high seven catches included two first-half scores. "Each game gets harder. Each team that comes to play (us), they come with the full boat, ready to play. As we progress, you can see the continuity accelerate. But we still have a ways to go. Even though we're winning, we can look at the tape and say, 'God, we need to sharpen that up.' "

It would have been easy to assume that their latest outing was over at halftime, when the Chargers went into the locker room with a 28-3 lead.

They were clicking on that many cylinders, making their four touchdown drives resemble something of a 7-on-7 practice session. If it wasn't L.T. darting and juking to propel the running game, it was Philip Rivers pinpointing throws — short and deep, from the shotgun or on play-action passes alike — to shred Denver's secondary. Rivers had a perfect 158.3 passer rating in the first half.

Gates was on top of his game, essentially clearing the boards near the goal line for his two scores. A vertical leap between Williams and Champ Bailey produced the game's first touchdown, a 12-yarder, and near the end of the half the former college basketball player used a low-post positioning technique to create the space in front of John Lynch for a 7-yard touchdown.

Getting defensive

Meanwhile, the Chargers defense gave rookie quarterback Jay Cutler little time and few open windows to complete passes. And even Denver's best play — a 51-yard run by Tatum Bell— was a letdown. En route to the end zone on a sideline streak, Bell stepped out of bounds at the Chargers' 24-yard line, and the Broncos could do no better than a 34-yard field goal from Jason Elam.

But it has been apparent this season that when the Chargers are involved, no 28-3 lead is safe. The last time the teams played, on Nov. 19 at Denver, the Chargers overcame a 24-7 deficit en route to a 35-27 win. That was a week after they won 49-41 vs. Cincinnati after trailing by 21 points. And in the Chargers' last loss, 30-27 at Kansas City on Oct. 22, they fell behind 20-3 before tying the game in the fourth quarter.

This time, it was the Chargers who flirted with the prospect of losing a big lead. Denver struck for two Cutler-to-Tony Scheffler touchdowns in the third quarter, sandwiching an Antonio Cromartie fumbled kickoff return. Elam's 33-yard kick made it 28-20.

Suddenly Cutler, who completed just 4 passes for 36 yards in the first half, began playing a hot hand. He completed 10 of his 12 passes in the third quarter to jump-start the attempted comeback.

"We can't let teams back in the game," said Merriman, who had two sacks and two forced fumbles. "When we've got 'em down, we can't let them get back up."

The Chargers' defense, which entered the game with an NFL-high 44 sacks, rebooted itself and snuffed out two drives in the fourth quarter with big plays on fourth-down.

Merriman helped pave a way to history by forcing Cutler into the turnover that set up Tomlinson's record TD.

Afterward Tomlinson talked about how his place in history really hasn't sunk in.

Tomlinson, to the delight of fans and spectators along the sideline, ambles inside the pylon ahead of Denver defender Domonique Foxworth. His three scores helped the Chargers clinch the AFC West title with the victory over the Broncos.

San Diego teammates hoist the touchdown king — LaDainian Tomlinson — after the tailback charged into the end zone with his 29th tally in a 48-20 defeat of the Broncos. Tomlinson, who recorded his seventh consecutive multi-touchdown game, is now just two points shy of the single-season point record.